Cat Vs Dog

I have a question for anyone who has both cats and dogs! I currently have an 8 year old cat and a 9 month old toy long haired chiuahuah! Of course the cat came first and that’s where the problem lies! I know it can take some time for them to become civil, however, I was wondering if anyone has any tips! We have a 2 story place so the cat is able to escape and we do keep the stairs gated off when we are home so the puppy can’t just run up and down (I let him a little here and there until he gains our trust), and we have had on just a couple occasions cat “sightings” downstairs. They have come face to face and for the most part the dog acts like he wants to play and the cat sounds like a sprinkler going off with all the hissing! There is no aggression on his part at all, just “I wanna play” type moves! So I am hoping she will come to terms and start coming downstairs again! Since she hasn’t been, well, nighttime is when she wants attention so she keeps us up by climbing all over us in bed!

The other thing I need Tips or advice on is how to handle the litter box! He hasn’t tried to go in it yet and I correct him when he goes near it, however, if he is allowed to go up and down the stairs on his own, I can’t supervise him all the time! So any ideas there would be helpful!

time is really the only answer. it can take a cat months to feel comfortable around a dog and you are already giving the cat plenty of spaces to hide and feel safe.

As for the litterbox, the best solution is management. you will have to keep the litterbox in a place the dog is not allowed to access. maybe arrange a baby gate so the cat go over but the dog can't. I would also teach your dog the leave it command, but the temptations would be very great whenever you're not there!

I agree with fickla - the BEST way to prevent eating kitty poop is to simply keep it where your pup can't get it. I made the mistake of trying to teach Cassidy (my golden) just not to go near it, but the few times I wasn't around and she got a hold of some yummy poo, she learned to love the flavor so much that now she would sneak around behind our backs to get it! We keep our litter box in our "guest bathroom" with the doorway gated off. In other words, we have just given up on trying to keep her out of the litterbox, now that we know she will eat it at every chance - no amount of training has given her any pause at eating it if she sees the opportunity. LOL :dogrolleyes:

Also, as far as socializing the two, that is something that has been ONGOING in our house since getting Cassidy over a year ago. It took Shadow, our cat, MONTHS to be civil to her - and I think it's mostly because, like you guys, our dog was so playful as a puppy, and the cat didn't like her coming at him so quickly and pawing him, etc - even though she was just trying to play with him! He still gets annoyed with her if she's too rowdy, but he is completely calm with her typically. His disdain for her is obvious, but hey, that's a cat for you! LOL :dognowink:

One more thing we did to help them acclimate (after a few weeks of allowing the cat whatever space he wanted) was to click/treat for interest in each other (the cat is unfamiliar with the clicker except to know that it brings delicious morsels of food). We got the two of them near each other on the floor (my husband holding one and me holding the other) several times a day/evening and gave them both LOTS of treats. If you decide to train with a clicker, you can also carry it with you along with a few treats and capture any calm interest from the dog to the cat with a click/treat - this helped Cassidy learn that when she was calm around the cat, she got something yummy!

All in all, as I said, the cat still doesn't ENJOY the dog, but he tolerates her fine. He would probably be happy if she disappeared forever when he's trying to nap on the sofa, but then again, sometimes he has fun chasing her and hissing/spitting at the top of his lungs - HE initiates these altercations... haha.

Good litter box idea:
Our friends have their cat's litter box in their bathroom closet. They installed a kitty-door into the closet door. The litter box is close to the toliet for throwing out cat poop, but no one sees it, and no dog can get to it.

For the litter box, your best bet is a baby gate because most medium to small sized dogs can get through kitty-doors. I thought my beagle wouldn't be able to fit into ours, but he can shimmy his way in and he will do it in order to get that cat poop!! Try to teach him "no" when he comes close.

Give the cat some space and he'll come down when he's comfortable with the dog's smell. Try putting the dog in the kennel so the cat can say hello without the fear of the dog chasing at the cat (or the other way around depending on who hates on who haha). Time will be your best friend in this situation, especially because the cat is older.

My nine year old cat gets along great with my dog as long as he doesn't come to close and it's only been two weeks. It's the 4 year old cat I'm having problems with. He hides all day ): but he's making progress!